A variety of bicycle carriers are presently used to transport sporting goods and similar equipment. However, although these carriers are usually adequate for accommodating gloves, helmets, towels, uniforms and clothing, they are typically not satisfactory for transporting elongate or cumbersome items such as baseball bats, tennis racquets, hockey sticks and fishing rods. Conventional carriers typically permit such elongate equipment to bounce around and shift position drastically as the bicycle is ridden thereby interfering with operation of the bicycle and occasionally extending dangerously into the path of other bicyclists or pedestrians. Moreover, present carriers are often too shallow to securely support elongate sports equipment and, as a result, the equipment may fall out of the carrier. Therefore, these features are not only an annoyance, they also pose a safety hazard both to the rider and to those around him.
Currently, the only alternative available to the rider has been for him to carry the elongate item in one hand while steering with the other hand. This is both awkward and dangerous. The number of items which can be transported in this manner is also quite limited.